Hikari/Yami

Chapter 6: Spinner's Choice

by HA

"Okay," Jay said, waving for calm as he stared at the large fireball hovering over Spinner's hand. "Spin, just...put that thing out."

Spinner continued to grin as he aimed the fireball at the pile of yearbooks. "Burn, baby, burn."

Seeing he wasn't getting through to the other boy, Jay started to creep around the pile of yearbooks towards Spinner, who didn't seem to notice him. In fact, he seemed to be mesmerized by the large, flickering blue flame before him.

"Oooooooo," Spinner remarked as he took in the fire. "Aaaaaaaaahhhhhh..." He grinned at the pile of yearbooks waiting to be burned. "This is gonna burn real n..."

Without a second thought, Jay tackled Spinner from his right side. They slammed into a nearby locker, and the Shadowmyst flew out of Spinner's hand and clattered to the floor. Thankfully for the school, the fire went out.

"Let go!" Spinner shouted as he struggled to break away from Jay.

"Not until you get your brain back!" Jay yelled back, pushing Spinner harder against the locker.

"Get off of me!" Spinner shoved back hard, and Jay fell to the floor. As Jay tried to stand, Spinner went for the Shadowmyst. Just as Jay was back on his feet, Spinner grabbed the Shadowmyst and pointed it at him. Spinner's eyes and grin widened as the blue flame formed before him once again.

"Spinner, listen to me," Jay said, trying to stay calm as the blue fire grew to the size of a basketball. "You don't want to do this."

"You sure about that?" Spinner watched as the fire grew to the size of a giant beach ball. "Pretty, isn't it?"

Jay started racking his brain as the fire floated before him. He willed himself to think faster as Spinner increased its size.


Run run run run run...

Her heart thumping against her chest, Kendra willed herself to go faster as she heard the sound of many footsteps behind her. She kept her grip on Henrietta's hand, although the other girl was keeping pace on her own two feet instead of letting herself get dragged along.

"Kendra..." Henrietta stared at the horde of creatures chasing them.

"We're almost there," Kendra said, keeping her focus on what was in front of her. Then, she felt Henrietta fall out of her grasp.

"Kendra!"

Kendra turned around sharply and saw that one of the creatures had latched itself onto Henrietta's back. The creature giggled in triumph and raised its clawed hands while its legs wrapped themselves around the poor girl, who was trying to grab it. Behind them, the rest of the horde was getting closer. Sprinting forward, Kendra grabbed the reature and pulled as hard as she could. The creature shrieked and swung one claw at her, but the swipe missed her face. Ignoring the cold feeling she had in her hands, she tugged one last time and yanked the creature off Henrietta and flung it towards its brethren. Kendra watched as her first try at shadow creature bowling resulted in a strike as creature after creature fell like dominoes.

"You all right?" she asked Henrietta.

"Yes, but if want to stay that way, we should keep going." Henrietta pointed to the creatures, who were rising to their feet and shaking off their brief discomfort.

"Good idea," Kendra said, and the two resumed running.

"Not to sound like a negative nanny," Henrietta said as they ran, "but even if we outrun those monsters and get to the school and find your brother there, what do you plan to do with him?"

"If he's okay, I plan to beat the hell out of him," Kendra answered with a grin.

"And if he's not okay?"

Kendra didn't say anything until they reached Degrassi. Luckily for them, the creatures had disappeared. "Guess they didn't want to follow us anymore," she remarked as she looked around for them.

"I guess," Henrietta said as she caught her breath. "Looks like no one's here," she said as she looked up the stairs and through the glass doors. "Lights are still off."

"He's inside," Kendra said before walking up the stairs.

"What makes you so sure?" Henrietta asked as she followed her.

"A feeling," Kendra said as they stood before the glass doors.

"You seem close to your brother," Henrietta said.

"Yeah," Kendra said as she stared at her reflection in the glass. "He's always been looking out for me ever since I was little." She gripped the door handle. "Even when I didn't want him to." She found the door to be locked, which wasn't a big surprise. "I remember when some boys were hassling me after school. One of them was about to punch me when Spinner just grabbed his arm from behind, spun him around, and told him if he ever tried to hit me, he'd beat the hell out of him."

"What happened after that?" Henrietta asked.

"They ran," Kendra recalled, "and I told Spinner off for butting in. Then he took me aside and said, 'Look, you're my sister, and no matter what, I'm gonna look out for you.'" She glared at the door. "We have to get inside."

Henrietta looked over the entrance. "Perhaps the back?"


"Don't you like it, Jay?" Spinner said, still staring at the fireball. "It's so pretty."

"Yeah, it is," Jay said, praying the fire wouldn't end up on the yearbooks. "Now that we agree on that, can you make it go away now?"

Spinner rubbed the Shadowmyst with his thumb, which made the fireball flicker rapidly. "Make it go away, huh?" He grinned and chuckled. "Oh, how I wish I could do that." The chuckle grew to a laugh that echoed across the hallway. "I wish I didn't listen to you that day. You know," he said, laughing again, "make Rick think Jimmy was behind the prank. I think we shouldn't have done it in the first place. Hell, maybe we should've left the freak alone. Maybe if we did..." He suppressed the tears threatening to flow from his eyes. "Maybe if we did leave Rick alone, Jimmy wouldn't be in a wheelchair, and everyone would like me again."

Jay stared at him. "Spin..."

"But we can't change that, can we?" Spinner continued. "Rick's dead, Jimmy's probably gonna be crippled for the rest of his life, and everyone hates me, including my own sister." He chuckled. "You know that people hate her because of what we did? Did you know that, Jay?"

"Spin, just put out the fire, and let's get out of here."

Spinner grinned as he heard Jay's words. "Heh, more suggestions from you. Look what happened last time I listened to you." He giggled as he looked at the blue fire. "Ya know, I was wrong. I can make it go away." He aimed the Shadowmyst at the yearbooks. "One shot, Jay, one shot, and..." He felt two arms wrap around his abdomen from behind.

"Really shouldn't have gotten distracted by the pretty flames there, Spin," Jay remarked as he spun his captive around. He threw him to the floor, and once again, the fire was extinguished, and the Shadowmyst landed on the floor. "All right, let's...hey!"

Spinner had reached for the Shadowmyst, but Jay tackled him from behind and pinned him face-down to the floor. "Let go!" he yelled as he tried to stretch his arm towards the statue.

"Not until you come to your senses!" Jay yelled back as he tightened his grip and pulled him away from the Shadowmyst.

"I just want it to stop!" Spinner yelled as his hand missed grabbing the object he desired.

"What, you mean your suffering?" Jay asked as he turned Spinner onto his back and held him down by his shoulders.

"It's my fault," Spinner sobbed, for the tears had broken through. "My best friend's in a wheelchair, my friends hate me, my sister hates me..."

"So that's it, huh?" Jay glared at Spinner. "So you want to end your suffering by making them suffer?" He shook him hard and almost caused his head to hit the floor. "You want your friends to suffer, huh? Do you?"

Spinner sobbed louder. "I want 'em back. My friends, my sister...I want 'em back."

Jay took a deep breath before assuming the role of the voice of reason, which he rarely was. "Listen, as your friend substitute, I'm telling you. This isn't the way. It's not." He looked into Spinner's tear-filled eyes. "You want everyone to think you're an arsonist? You want to be remembered by your sister as the guy who went nuts and torched Degrassi?"

"I just want 'em back," Spinner said.

Jay sighed and helped Spinner to his feet. He surveyed the mess they had made in the hallway and recalled how much toilet paper was flung around in the gym. "Come on, man," he said with a slap on Spinner's back. "We got to clean this up."

"Yeah." Spinner spotted the Shadowmyst and walked toward it, but Jay stepped in front of him.

"You are not using this thing," Jay said as he snatched it up.

"You got a better idea?" Spinner said. "It's the fastest way to fix everything, not to mention it's quicker to use it to get out of here."

Jay frowned at Spinner and the troublesome object in his hand. "Uh uh, man. Not going to risk you trying to torch the school again." He looked over it. "You rub it like a lamp in those fairy tales and make a wish, right?"

"Yeah, I think," Spinner answered.

"Thanks." Jay rubbed the Shadowmyst and focused on undoing the mess they made. Nothing happened.

"Um, maybe you should try harder," Spinner suggested.

Jay rubbed the Shadowmyst and really focused on undoing the mess they made. Nothing happened.

"Guess it only works for me," Spinner concluded, holding out his hand. "Better hand it over."

Jay looked at Spinner's hand. "You promise to not get all crazy?"

"I promise," Spinner said firmly.

"You sure?"

"I'm sure."

Jay let out a groan and slapped the Shadowmyst into Spinner's hand. "Thank you can undo everything and get us out of here?"

Spinner smiled. "I'll see what I can do."


"Okay, now what?" Kendra asked as she stared at the back entrance to the school.

Henrietta was about to say something when a flash of dark energy materialized before them. Seconds later, Spinner and Jay stood before them.

"Whoo-hoo!" Spinner exclaimed as he raised his hands in triumph. "What a rush! Ow!"

Jay had slapped him on the back of his head. "A little louder, Spin. I think the people in Vancouver couldn't hear you."

"Hey, you can't deny that felt cool," Spinner said.

"I just want to be out of here," Jay said, and then he saw the two girls staring at them. "Oh great."

Spinner blinked at them. "Kendra? What are you doing here?"

Kendra placed her hands on her hips and glared at her older brother. "Looking for you, you big dummy. What the hell were you doing in there?"

Spinner stared at his sister and walked up to her. Before she could say anything, he gathered her in his arms and lifted her off the ground in a tight hug. As she lowered her to the ground, he smiled at her.

Kendra smiled back. "I'm still mad at you."

CLAP CLAP CLAP. "Awwwwww, what a touching family reunion."

"Huh?" Jay looked around. "Who...?"

The stranger in white stepped out of the darkness. Behind him lumbered a mountain of a person clad in a trenchcoat and hat. Suddenly, Kendra shivered, and Henrietta grabbed to the nearest thing to stop herself from falling, which happened to be Spinner.

"What do you want?" Spinner demanded, and he held up the Shadowmyst. "If it's this, then you can keep it!" He threw it at the stranger, who effortlessly caught it with his gloved hand.

The stranger looked at the Shadowmyst and flashed a smile at Spinner. "Oh, this?" He and his companion approached the four teens. Everyone heard the sound of squishing as they got closer. The stranger stood in front of them. "I'm afraid you don't understand, Gavin."

Spinner stared at the stranger. "How did you know my name?"

"Spinner, what's going on?" Kendra asked.

"Oh, does it matter, Gavin?" the stranger continued. "It won't be your name for long."

Jay stepped forward and stood toe-to-toe with the stranger. "All right, you whitewashed weirdo, your little toy almost made my friend here go nuts." He poked him in the chest and glared into his eyes. "Now just get out of my face and our lives, bring that thing with you, and we'll just be on our way." He poked the same spot harder. "Got it?"

The stranger looked at where Jay had poked him and brushed it off with his gloved hand. "I don't like you," he said with a grin and narrowed eyes.

"Blarg!"

A slimy fist shot out from behind the stranger and socked Jay in the face. The impact threw him into the wall behind him.

"Jay!" Spinner ran to his fallen friend and looked him over. Henrietta and Kendra joined him and knelt next to the fallen teen.

"What the...?" Kendra fingered a slimy substance on Jay's face and rubbed it between her finger and thumb. She stared at the giant in the trenchcoat.

"He's still alive," Henrietta said after withdrawing her fingertips from Jay's neck.

Spinner faced the two strangers. "Who are you guys?" he asked.

The stranger in white smiled and chuckled as he walked up to Spinner, leaving his companion behind. "Why, we'll be your new co-workers, Gavin," he said as he leaned in for a closer look.

Spinner gasped. Henrietta trembled. Kendra stared incredulously at the stranger's face. Instead of a human face, what they saw reminded them of a mask the killer tended to wear in horror movies. He looked at them through two narrow slitted eyes, and a hollow, wide curved smile crossed his smooth ivory-white face. No nose was present, although he had hair that barely touched his shoulders.

"Ah." The stranger's mouth didn't move. "From the way you guys look, you're seeing the real me."

Spinner gulped. "Real...you?" Besides him, Kendra could hear her heart hammering against her chest. Henrietta was gripping her arm tightly.

The stranger chuckled. "The school may be still standing, but you still used the Shadowmyst. Tell me, Gavin," he said, leaning closer to Spinner, "how did it feel using the power of darkness?" The mask-like face closed in to Spinner's own. "Did you enjoy it?"

Spinner stammered. "Um...um...um..."

"Don't deny it, Gavin." The stranger's face moved back. "You enjoyed causing all that chaos in there, and for that moment, you really wanted to burn the school down."

Kendra looked uneasily at her brother. "Spinner, what is he talking about?"

Spinner stared blankly at the stranger. "H-H-How did you...?"

The stranger would've been sneering if he was able to. "Oh yes, Gavin, we know what you did. We also know what you did to poor Rick Murray." He paced around Spinner. "Oh yes, we do! Drove him to bringing a gun to school after you gave him a nice coat of paint and feathers. Bravo! Whoop-dee-do!" He waved his hands in front of Spinner, who bowed his head. "But that wasn't enough, was it? Oh no, Gavin, you tricked him into thinking your best friend was behind the prank, didn't you? In fact, poor Jimmy was Rick's first victim." He gestured a gun with his hand, pointed it at Spinner, and pulled the trigger. "Bang! Right in the back, and Jimmy, future NBA star, is stuck in a wheelchair. Might never walk again." He slapped Spinner on the back. "Good job!" he said with a laugh.

From his place, the other stranger gurgled loudly as if laughing. He was bent over and holding his abdomen with a slimy hand.

His eyes closed, Spinner recalled how he had told Jimmy about what him did. He recalled his friends shunning him. He recalled begging Jimmy for his forgiveness and the cold response he got.

"Too bad Rick died," the stranger in white remarked. "Would've been nice to have another assassin, but I don't think he was too special." He looked at the unconscious Jay. "He's not special, either. Petty thugs like him...a dime a dozen, but you!" He gripped Spinner's shoulder with his free hand. "You, Gavin, are unique. Not only did you set off a potential killer, you betrayed your best friend in the process." He looked at Degrassi. "Would've been nice if you torched the place, but hey, we were going to take you no matter what."

Spinner raised his head and looked into those vacant slits the stranger had for eyes. "What? What do you mean by take me?"

The stranger wagged his finger in front of Spinner's face and replaced his free hand on his shoulder. "Not a bright one, are you? Listen, Gavin, we're giving you a chance to use your talents on a grander scale. You know, help us spread darkness throughout the world. In short, we're asking you...to become one of us."

Spinner shoved the stranger's hand off his shoulder. "No way! I'm not some psycho like you!" He glared at the Shadowmyst in the stranger's other hand. "That thing! That thing made me want to burn down the school!"

The stranger crossed his arms. "My, what denial." He chuckled. "The Shadowmyst didn't make you do anything, Gavin. All it did was tap into the darkness in your heart and manifested it according to your wants." He stepped closer to Spinner. "Poor Gavin. All your friends hate you, and I'm sure your family wants to disown you. You've got nothing here."

"That's not true!" Kendra marched up to the stranger in white.

"Kendra, wait!" Henrietta called from near Jay.

"Oooooo, looks like your sister wants to stand up for you, Gavin," the stranger remarked.

"Kendra, stay back," Spinner said.

Kendra glared at the stranger. "You know nothing about my brother, you freak, so get your ugly face out of here and bring that giant freakshow with you," she said through clenched teeth.

Spinner stared at his sister. "Kendra..."

The stranger looked at Spinner. "So you're refusing our generous job offer?"

Spinner glared at him. "There's no chance in hell I'm working for whoever you guys are."

The stranger's eyes stared at him. "Is that your final answer?"

"You bet it is," Kendra declared.

The stranger stepped back and shrugged. "Okay."

Then, it happened. "Kendra, watch...!" Henrietta yelled.

Suddenly, Kendra was lifted off the ground by a pair of slimy hands. One of them went over her mouth while the free arm wrapped around her, squeezing her tightly against her giant captor. "Mmmmmmmpph!" she cried out, her mouth muffled by slime.

"Kendra!" Spinner looked helplessly as his sister struggled in vain to escape the giant's tight grip.

"Time to play hardball, Gavin." The stranger in white snapped his fingers. "Oh, Darklings!"

Several dark puddles materialized around Henrietta and Jay. The shadow creatures emerged from them and surrounded the two teens. Their teeth and claws were eager to dig into flesh.

"I'll make it simple, Gavin," the stranger in white said. "Join us, and we'll let your sister and the other two live. Otherwise..."

Kendra managed to free her face from the slimy hand covering it. She spat out yellow-green slime before saying anything. "Spinner, don't...!" Then the hand closed in on her face, silencing her.

Nearby, the shadow creatures cackled wickedly. Henrietta leaned as close to Jay and the wall behind her as possible. The giant pressed his hand closer to Kendra's face, and the slime started seeping into her nose and mouth. Her kicking started to slow down. Her arms started to go limp. Her eyelids were getting heavy.

"Gee, I don't think she can last very long," the stranger in white remarked as Kendra grew weaker. "Mr. Grime here really knows how to suffocate people, and I give her maybe a minute or two before she's dead."

"Let her go!" Spinner shouted. He prepared to charge at the giant.

"I wouldn't do anything stupid," the stranger in white warned, "and boy, are you selfish or what? Don't you care about the two other people who'll be Darkling chow if you don't come with us?"

Spinner looked at Henrietta and Jay, who were surrounded by Darklings eager to dine on their flesh and bones. He looked at Kendra, who was fading quickly in the giant's arms.

"Your choice, Gavin. Join us, give in to the darkness in your heart, and help us out, or..." The stranger gestured towards Kendra, Henrietta, and Jay. "...your sister and these other two die."

Spinner stood his ground, but he saw Kendra starting to go limp in the giant's arms. Cackling loudly, the Darklings crept closer to their prey.

The stranger held out the Shadowmyst to Spinner. "Well, what's your choice, Gavin?"

Spinner looked at Kendra, Henrietta, and Jay one last time. Without saying a word, he took a step forward.

"No!" Henrietta yelled as Spinner took another step forward. The Darklings hissed at her.

Mr. Grime lifted his hand off Kendra's face, and air resumed flowing through the proper channels after she coughed out some slime. Kendra's grateful lungs began taking in air, and her eyes slowly opened.

Spinner stood in front of the stranger in white, who was dangling the Shadowmyst in front of him. He looked at the little black statue and reached for it.

Kendra became fully aware, and the words of the first stranger echoed in her head. All hearts are ruled by darkness. Your brother will belong to me. "Spinner, no!" she cried out.

Spinner's hand froze in front of the Shadowmyst. He looked at his sister still being held by the giant called Mr. Grime. He watched as the Darklings stood their ground around Henrietta and Jay as if waiting for the order to strike.

"Come on, Gavin," the stranger in white said, dangling the Shadowmyst before him. "Time to join the Dark Side. You know you want to."

Spinner faced the stranger. "Kendra, take care of yourself, and again, I'm sorry." He reached for the Shadowmyst.

"Spinner!" Kendra cried out as her brother's fingertips were within brushing range of the dark object.